The University: International Expectations - Softcover

Alexander, King; Alexander, Kern

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0773522492 ISBN 13: 9780773522497

Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2002

Synopsis

They examine the purpose of the university, its evolution and change, its degree of autonomy, evaluations of performance and accountability, its role in guaranteeing human rights, financing, and efficiency and the influence of technology on instruction and structure - all issues that are highly relevant to university leaders and legislators who seek to form and fashion responsive and workable institutions and systems of higher education.The authors suggest measures needed to overcome organizational inertia and recognize the necessity of responsiveness to social and economic changes. Different aspects of worldwide human rights struggles that bear on the university are discussed - for instance the situation in South Africa, where higher education institutions are seeking to redress the misdeeds of the past. The authors also address the issue of public versus private institutional competition and the emergence of the private for-profit institution. Finally, the realities of how and to what extent technology can be relied upon to improve college and university instruction is examined. Contributors include Don Aitkin (University of Canberra, Australia), F. King Alexander (University of Illinois), Kern Alexander (University of North Florida), Michael J. Beloff (Trinity College, Oxford), Ian Clark (Council of Ontario Universities), Stephen R. Greenwald (Audrey Cohen College, New York), James J. Mingle (Cornell University), John H. Moore (Grove City College, Pennsylvania), David W. Olien (University of Wisconsin System, Madison), and David R. Woods (Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa).

About this title

About the Author:

Dr. F. King Alexander was recently named the President and Chancellor of Louisiana State University, which has an annual budget of $3.3 billion and more than 43,000 students. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Alexander was president of California State University, Long Beach (2005-2013) one of the nation s largest public universities located in southern California. During his more than seven-year tenure at California State University, Long Beach, Dr. Alexander was twice named the California State University Student Association (CSSA) President of the Year, which represents all 23 California State Universities and its over 440,000 students. Prior to becoming president of California State University, Long Beach, Dr. Alexander was president of Murray State University in Kentucky (2001-2005) and was a faculty member at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, where he was the director of the graduate higher education program. A Kentucky native who grew up in north Florida, Dr. Alexander received his Ph. D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in higher education administration with a focus on finance and educational policy analysis, and a Master of Science degree from the University of Oxford, Oxford, England in comparative educational studies. As a teacher and administrator, Dr. Alexander has received many honors, including the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education Alumni Achievement Award (2002) and has research university faculty affiliations at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for the Study of Postsecondary Education (WISCAPE) and Cornell University Higher Education Research Institute (CHERI).Dr. Alexander also has been asked to represent public higher education colleges and universities on numerous occasions to the United States Congress on issues of college affordability, student indebtedness, and institutional efficiency and effectiveness in efforts to address many of the growing challenges facing American higher education. Due to his national recognition and involvement on higher education issues, Dr. Alexander has served on numerous U.S. higher education and statewide organizational leadership boards where he remains very active.

Review:

"An interesting and thought provoking collection, well written, and informative." William Westfall, author of The Founding Moment: Church, Society, and the Construction of Trinity College "Excellent pieces, and quite illuminating. The overall impact is to underline the commonality of problems faced by institutions all across the formerly Anglo-Saxon world. This work will provide salutary and perhaps comforting reading to embattled university administrators everywhere." Rick Van Loon, President, Carleton University

About this edition

• Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0773522492
• ISBN 13: 9780773522497
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 152